


The Plant Whisperer

by tinyarmedtrex



Category: Raven Cycle - Maggie Stiefvater
Genre: Adam is really good with plants, Fluff, Hogwarts AU, M/M, Rated T for language, Ronan Lynch Has Feelings, Slytherin Adam Parrish, its a soft fic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-19
Updated: 2020-10-19
Packaged: 2021-03-09 05:07:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,838
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27109213
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tinyarmedtrex/pseuds/tinyarmedtrex
Summary: They were both quiet, watching the plant snake it’s way up Ronan’s skin. Ronan barely breathed, worried that somehow he’d scare one of them away. Then Adam asked, “Can you sing? I think he wants a song.”“How the bloody hell can you tell?” Ronan asked, looking from the plant to Adam. A tendril raised, almost waving at them.“He likes songs.” Adam said simply.Ronan groaned. Why the hell was he unable to say no to this Slytherin? He started singing quietly, almost humming to himself. The plant responded, arching up towards his voice and Adam started to clip.“That’s beautiful.” He muttered, not looking at Ronan, “What are the words?”He grinned. “Squash One, Squash Two, Squash Three, Squash Four. Your skull’s not as hard as the boots I bore-”Or, a Hogwarts AU where Ronan finds himself in detention with Adam and the two get a chance to know each other.
Relationships: Ronan Lynch & Adam Parrish, Ronan Lynch/Adam Parrish
Comments: 34
Kudos: 151





	The Plant Whisperer

“This is bollocks.” Ronan grumbled, staring down at the plant he was supposed to be tending. Every time he reached for a tendril it pulled back, screeching loudly at him. In return, he glared at it. “How the hell are you supposed to do this?”

Noah, his Herbology partner and friend, looked at the plant. He wasn’t having any better luck. His fingers were red and bruised from where the plant had nipped at him. “Damned if I know. His head swung around the room, trying to see what others were doing. “Parrish is stroking it.” He hissed, nudging Ronan’s shoulder. “The plant I mean.”

Ronan leaned over to look, seeing that Noah was right. The Slytherin had his fingers extended, lightly stroking the leaves while he trimmed a different piece. Ronan’s eyes caught on Adam’s long fingers, noticing how the plant curled around them, nearly dancing against his elegant hands. 

Ronan had to force himself to look away before the other boy noticed, feeling his cheeks burning bright red. 

“Why the fuck is the Slytherin so much better at this?” He asked, glaring at the plant again. “Shouldn’t we be better than him? Aren’t plants supposed to like us?” 

Noah shrugged, playing with his yellow and black tie. “Maybe we’re in the wrong house.” He looked at the bright blue leaves. “Or maybe the plant is an asshole.” The plant seemed to stiffen in response. 

Ronan tipped his head back and laughed, drawing looks from several other tables. “You’ve got that right.” 

Noah tried once more, his hand darting out with the sheers. The plant was faster than him though. All Noah earned for his attempt was another red mark. He swore then dropped the sheers on the table, looking at Ronan again. “Let’s leave. Sprout is off making eyes at a mandrake root, she’ll never notice. We can get to the quidditch pitch early.” 

Ronan glanced around, seeing that Noah was right. Sprout was in another room, wearing thick headphones as she bent over the table full of mandrakes. He nodded, shoving his books and quills into his bag and slinging it over his shoulder. As usual Noah hadn’t brought anything with to class so he was already out the door by the time Ronan stood. He was about to follow when Professor Sprout walked into the room. He tried to steer back to his table but he was obviously caught in the act. 

“Leaving class early Lynch?” She looked around, shaking her head. “It appears that your friend has disappeared as well. Very well. Detention for you both. I’ll see you tomorrow, after breakfast. Be ready to work. I trust you’ll tell Mr. Czerny.”

Ronan swallowed a groan. Detention was bad enough but herbology detention was even worse. It was hand’s down Ronan’s worst subject and now he had to spend a Saturday morning getting attacked by plants. 

“Yes ma’am.” He mumbled once it was clear she was waiting for a reply. He slunk back to his table, ignoring the glances from his classmates. He knew the other Hufflepuffs would be annoyed with him, hating that he racked up more detentions than all of them combined, but he didn’t care. He’d never cared about what they thought before and he wasn’t about to start now. 

The rest of class was even worse without Noah. By the end of it his hands looked like Noah’s, red and angry. 

The next day the two of them showed up at the greenhouse, both grumbling about the early hour. Noah had tried to get out of it by pretending he had died. It was an excuse he’d used one too many times and Ronan knew Sprout wouldn’t buy it. He knew if they didn’t show they get kicked off the quidditch team, something he wasn’t about to let happen. So he’d dragged Noah with him, insisting it would be over soon enough. 

When they entered the building Ronan saw that they weren’t alone. Tad Carruthers was there, a mouthy Gryffindor that Ronan despised and- Adam Parrish. Ronan had to do a double take. Despite being a Slytherin he was the darling of many teachers, the smartest student in their year and the last person Ronan expected to see in detention. 

“What did you do to get here?” Noah asked, grinning as his eyes landed on Adam. “Too much extra credit?”

Adam ignored him, his nose in a book. Noah and Ronan had just put down their bags when the professor entered. “Perfect. At least all of you managed to show up on time. Ronan and Adam, I want you two to finish the trimmings that didn’t get completed yesterday. Tad and Noah, you’ll be with me, cleaning out the backroom.”

“No fair! That place has spiders the size of my arm!” Noah protested, looking at Ronan. He only shrugged. He wouldn’t have been there in the first place if it wasn’t for Noah.

“Boys, you’ll find everything you need in those baskets. I recommend working together.” She said, pointing to a basket on the table between them. “Tad and Noah, come with me.” Noah grumbled as he followed Sprout. Tad didn’t speak but if his expression was anything to go by he was unhappy as well. 

Wordlessly, Adam stood, pulling on the necessary equipment and going to the first plant. Ronan hadn’t moved, still sitting at his table. 

A minute later Adam turned to his, his expression annoyed. “Are you just going to sit there?”

“You don’t want me near those things.” 

Adam did something that was a combination of a shrug and eye roll. “What kind of Hufflepuff are you?”

“What kind of Slytherin are you?” He countered, watching the plants practically strain to be closer to Adam. He’d never seen something like that before, someone who had such an affinity for them. 

“A different kind.” Adam muttered, sounding put out as he said it. His shoulders slumped slightly and he turned back to the plant. He was almost disappointed that Adam had given up so easily. Ronan watched for another second before launching himself up and towards Adam. The other boy turned, surprised, and gave him a hard look. “Are you here to make this harder?”

Ronan shook his head. He didn’t know why he cared what Adam thought but he knew he didn’t want him to be disappointed in Ronan. “I can help. But be warned, they hate me.” 

Adam didn’t seem to believe him so Ronan sighed. “Imagine what it’s like, being a puff with a black thumb. Everyone else has plants next to their bed. I tried and they all died in a week.” He glared at the plant, blaming it for the death of it’s cousins. 

“Can’t be worse than a Slytherin who wants to keep plants. Not even poisonous or evil ones. Just a nice small bonsai tree.” Adam was quiet for a minute, running his fingers over the small trunk of the plant. “You need to be nice to them. Talk to them, or sing, that’s even better. Then they’ll relax and let you trim the leaves.” Adam’s voice was low and he reached out again, letting the fern furl around his delicate wrist. “See? Plants are much easier to understand than people. They just want to know you won’t hurt them.”

Ronan didn’t point out that people were the same. He was too busy staring at Adam’s pale skin and how it contrasted against the bright blue plant.

“Do you want to try?” Adam asked, his voice still quiet. 

“Sure I-” He cleared his throat, addressing the plant. “Hi plant. I’m Ronan. I- want to cut you?”

Adam chuckled, shaking his head. “Not great.” He reached out with his free hand, grabbing Ronan’s and pulling it towards the plant. “It’s like a dog, you need to let it smell you.” A small tendril came out, pressing against Ronan’s fingertip but he wasn’t paying attention to that. He could only think about how his hand felt in Adam’s. 

“What if it bites?” Ronan asked, closing his eyes and praying that Adam couldn’t feel how his heart was racing. 

“It won’t, not if it doesn’t need to.” Adam released his hand and the tendril moved further up, skirting over his fingers and palm.

They were both quiet, watching the plant snake it’s way up Ronan’s skin. Ronan barely breathed, worried that somehow he’d scare one of them away. Then Adam asked, “Can you sing? I think he wants a song.” 

“How the bloody hell can you tell?” Ronan asked, looking from the plant to Adam. A tendril raised, almost waving at them.

“He likes songs.” Adam said simply.

Ronan groaned. Why the hell was he unable to say no to this Slytherin? He started singing quietly, almost humming to himself. The plant responded, arching up towards his voice and Adam started to clip.

“That’s beautiful.” He muttered, not looking at Ronan, “What are the words?”

He grinned. “Squash One, Squash Two, Squash Three, Squash Four. Your skull’s not as hard as the boots I bore-”

“Stop!” Adam laughed, shaking his head. “Those aren’t the lyrics!” 

“They are. My dad taught me.” Ronan replied, grinning at how big Adam’s smile was. 

“Your dad must be an interesting man.”

“He was.” Ronan agreed. The plant was still reaching, seeming just as happy when he was talking as singing. 

The smile fell off Adam’s face, replaced with guilt. “Oh is he- I didn’t know.” 

“It’s fine. It was years ago. My brothers and I- we’re dealt with it. In our own ways.” Ronan didn’t know why he was telling Adam this. He never told anyone. Better to be the Hufflepuff that didn’t belong than the one with the dead father. 

“Well still. Sorry. I can’t imagine what that’s like.” Adam had started trimming again, not looking at him. 

“It could be worse.” He said quietly. Ronan had heard the rumors about Adam’s parents. Everyone had. How his muggle dad had hurt him as a child until one day Adam’s magic exploded, hurting himself and his parents. He was deaf in one ear from it, unfixable even with St. Mungo’s magic. Ronan remembered how Adam had looked on their first day, scrawny in his too large second hand robes and covered in bruises. 

Ronan remembered a lot about Adam. 

They were quiet for a while, talking only when they moved onto the next plant. Ronan liked this, being silent with Adam. It felt right. Normally, wherever he was he was itching to be somewhere else. It wasn’t like that with Adam. For once he felt like he was in the right place. 

“This isn’t bad, for detention.” Adam said as they started the fourth plant. 

“Better than helping Hagrid.” Ronan agreed, stretching out his hand for Adam to grab. He was trying not to notice how Adam’s hand seemed to linger in his, how he maintained contact even after he had to. He watched Adam carefully snip the plant, wondering not for the first time how he’d ended up in Slytherin.

“What did you do to get detention?” Ronan asked. Adam knew why he was there but Adam was a perfect student, highest grades in most subjects, in Outstanding in most of his O.W.L.S and Slytherin prefect. He kept his head down and was usually found in the library, not making mischief. Ronan was fairly certain that this was his first detention in six years. 

Adam didn’t reply and for a second Ronan wasn’t sure he’d heard him. Then he spoke. “Tad and I fought.” 

Ronan couldn’t help it. His face broke into a grin. “A prefect fighting? Is that allowed? Isn’t there some magic that keeps your fists lowered and shirt tucked in?”

“Sod off.” Adam replied, moving past Ronan and grabbing a new plant.

It was obvious that Adam didn’t want to talk about it but Ronan didn’t care. He was too invested now. “Why? Lover’s quarrel? Did he ask you to the dance in the wrong way?” 

“No- What?” Adam looked up, his eyes bulging slightly.

“You and Tad,” Ronan waved his hand in what he hoped was a nonchalant way. “There’s rumors you’re together.” His voice tightened as he said it. It wasn’t any of his business but he’d always wondered. He couldn’t help it. 

“You’d think you would know better than anyone not to believe rumors.” Adam mumbled, dropping his gaze again. 

Ronan waited for him to say more and when he didn’t he kicked the side of Adam’s shoe. Adam glared at him. “The fight.” Ronan prodded. He was trying to ignore the elation he felt at learning that Adam wasn’t with Tad. He could examine it later, when he was alone. Right now he wanted to know what could make the normally calm Adam angry enough to fight. 

“He insulted Blue.” 

Ronan deflated again. Blue Sargent. The Gryffindor beater. Adam’s ex girlfriend. Of course that had been what had riled Adam up. 

“Did he go after her hair? Or her weird outfits?” Ronan had nothing against Blue. Not really. She was prickly and angry with the world and he understood the feeling. 

Adam shook his head. “He said that she shouldn’t be here since she couldn’t afford the books.” He turned again, running his hand over the table. “He said that if you needed to use second hand books maybe you didn’t belong at an elite school like this.” 

Suddenly, Ronan understood. Adam may have been defending Blue but he was defending himself too. He’d seen Adam’s worn books, the ones that professors pulled out of dusty crates at the beginning of the semester. He’d noticed how Adam’s robes were a few inches too short, ones he’d bought during first year when he’d been nearly half a meter shorter. 

“Twat.” Ronan spat. “That doesn’t even make sense. Sargent is twice the wizard he is. Who cares how much gold she has?” He paused. “Or anyone else for that matter. It doesn’t matter.” 

Adam nodded, running his fingers over the leaves of a plant. “Maybe not to you but for some it’s all that matters.” 

Ronan knew that Adam was an odd Slytherin but now he really saw how. Most were from wealthy families, with a large safety night to fall back on. Adam didn’t have that. Ronan knew he spent all the holiday breaks at Hogwarts, not going home unless he had to. He guessed that Adam was poor in more ways than one. 

“It doesn’t matter to anyone that matters.” Ronan replied, his voice tight. He wanted to find Tad, to finish what Adam had started. He may not be the best wizard but he had two fists and a lot of anger. That would be enough to put Tad in his place. 

Then Adam bumped his shoulder and all the anger drained away. Ronan glanced over and saw that Adam was smiling slightly. “Thanks. I’ll, um, I’ll tell Blue.”

Ronan leaned against him, enjoying the small comfort. “Yea, tell her.” 

They got back to work, standing closer than they had been. They didn’t speak much, instead Ronan just watched Adam, enjoying his elegant hands and thin shoulders. 

“Well done boys!” Professor Spout said, both of them jumping as she appeared out of nowhere. “You did much better than the others. You may leave. Hopefully you learned your lesson.”

They both promised they had. They walked back into the castle together but then it was time for Adam to go down a staircase and Ronan up. There both paused.

“Ronan-” Adam said, his bright eyes finding Ronan’s. 

“Hogsmeade is coming up next weekend.” Ronan interrupted, sticking his hands in his pockets and purposefully not looking at the other boy. “You going?” He had no idea what possessed him to ask and he felt his skin itching as he waited for Adam’s reply. 

It took a second and Adam sounded disappointed when he did. “I don’t have permission. I usually spend the time in the library.”

Ronan inwardly cursed at himself. He knew that. He’d never seen Adam in any of the shops. He kicked at some dirt. “Hogsmeade rubbish anyway. I always get stuck watching Noah flirt with the shopgirls and all the shops are full of lovey couples being boring.” 

“Sounds terrible.” 

“What if we didn’t go- together?” Ronan asked, trying not to cringe at how awful that sounded.

If Adam thought so he didn’t show it. Instead Ronan was treated to another one of his little smiles. “I would enjoy that.”

Ronan offered him a smile of his own. “Brilliant.” He was about to say more when a group of students appeared, walking towards them and ruining whatever small moment they had. 

“I’ll see you in class.” He said as they left. “Try to keep your nose clean till then.”

Adam chuckled. “I’ll do my best.” With that he turned, heading down the stairs. Ronan watched until he couldn’t see Adam anymore then turned, his heart racing as he thought about next Saturday. 

  
  


**Author's Note:**

> This has been in the making for a long time. Started as a wild idea in a discord server and then people asked it on tumblr. So thanks all for the motivation.
> 
> (also I like the idea of a Ronan in hufflepuff. He's loyal af) 
> 
> I'm thinking about doing a part 2 with their non-Hogsmeade date. Thoughts?


End file.
